Washington, D.C. - Today, the White House introduced a legislative package designed to support federal response efforts and address BP's responsibility for clean up, environmental damage, and lost jobs in tourism and fishing.

Statement of Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune:

We applaud President Obama for his efforts to respond to the BP oil disaster quickly and vigorously. The package he has introduced today will help facilitate response efforts and ensure that BP covers the costs of the disaster.

But we need more. We need assurance that this won't happen again. President Obama needs to issue a presidential moratorium on all new offshore drilling, and to deliver a plan to the American people to break our addiction to oil once and for all.

As a result of this disaster, communities in the Gulf Coast are facing widespread job loss and destruction of their wetlands, beaches, and marine life.

We know that thousands of people are working tirelessly to stop the flow of oil into the Gulf. The disaster response crews need our support. The faster we can stop the flow of oil, the less damage our wildlife and coastal communities will face.

Our neighbors in the Gulf Coast also need all the help they can get. The federal government should do what it takes to help stop the massive flow of oil into the ocean, and to deal with the impacts of the disaster on coastal communities, and they should recover the full costs from BP. We need to make sure that hardworking Americans aren't left to pay the bill for BP's recklessness.

The total cost of response efforts so far is equal to roughly four days of BP's profits. The oil industry has been putting our oceans and communities at risk while making billions in profits, and they should foot the bill for this disaster.

Wherever there is offshore drilling, there is a risk of a disaster of this magnitude.

This disaster is a wake up call. We need our leaders to deliver a plan to get us off oil by promoting clean energy solutions. We already have the technology and solutions for a clean, efficient 21st century transportation system, we just need the political will to implement them.